Brz/gt86

[Supersonic]

Hi everyone.

Me and the other half sat in both of these at the Berkshire show yesterday and really liked them, especially the BRZ. We'd like to test drive them both but they're £27,000.

Basically either a house deposit or the car!

We've been wondering if it's morally right to test drive them even though it's extremely unlikely that we'll get either. What would any of you guys do?

 

[marrow]

Test drive them.

 

[felix]

How about a Megane 265 cup?

 

[son of solo]

this will probably be our next car once the first trade ins come back next year, not impressed with the colour line up with red being maybe the best colour (and i've seen them all) shame the rear spoiler cant be optioned off like the US cars.

 

[Supersonic]

this will probably be our next car once the first trade ins come back next year, not impressed with the colour line up with red being maybe the best colour (and i've seen them all) shame the rear spoiler cant be optioned off like the US cars.

The blue mica on the BRZ looks fantastic, also saw a burnt orange sort of colour on a GT86 today that looked good too.

As much as I really like the 265, my dad has a 250 so I'm sort of getting my Megane thrills through that, plus I'm thinking about giving RWD a go as is the girlfriend.
I know I've said about a 205 before but I kinda can't really get rid of the Clio for one, as much as I love them.

 

[aucky]

IMO, the GT86 is almost brilliant. But it's just too slow, too expensive, and not good looking enough to be the full package.

 

[eljeffo64]

The BRZ is interesting ( but maybe a bit underpowered) but for that money a nice mk2 focus RS for me - even against a 265; drove one a few times - what an engine, what a sound! (I posted a vid on here some while ago on a trackday with the camera inside the focus ........but with my T in front ) Fantastic car imo.

 

[Supersonic]

I finally got round to driving these yesterday and I have to say I'm pretty impressed. With the GT86 rather than the BRZ though. I drove the GT86 first and pretty much agree with the road testers apart from the power.
The ride is fantastic, much better than the Clio's. It feels firm but it never crashes over anything, even when driven over pretty crap roads and it never appears to lose composure.

The gearchange is less impressive, as is the engine. While the gearshift is direct it's pretty notchy. Personally I'd prefer a smoother, firmer change but it's not a deal breaker. The engine is ok, revs keenly, is very smooth and sounds pretty good but it's just not really inspiring. The same thankfully can't be said for the handling.
It feels really direct and darty. You can feel the low centre of gravity, so it doesn't roll much and the steering is great, nicely weighted and with very good feel. The pedals are pretty light (especially after the Clio), but this all gels together into a pretty damn good driving experience, (Short of the gearshift).

To add to that, the interior is also a really nice place to be. The seats are fantastic, better than the Recaros in my opinion and nothing feels like it will fall off, short of the usb/Ipod docking port cover, which is only made of a little bit of plastic.

 

[Jonc]

If you do get one, be prepared to see Clio's twin tail pipes more often as they disappear off into the distance.

 

[Supersonic]

Sorry i'm having problems adding to the rest of the post. Basically the GT86 has better interior details such as a white band in the rev counter like the Clio 200, and the aftersales service (for now) over the Subaru and just feels like a slightly better drive. The Subaru not having as good brakes and a slightly heavier throttle pedal, making it slightly harder to dial in the power you want. That may be due to me driving the GT86 first however. The suspension felt the same at the road speeds I was doing.

I agree Jon. I could run rings around it in the Clio but the GT86 was just a much nicer place to sit and it actually doesn't feel that slow. Plus it'll do big skids!

It feels very much like a rear wheel drive version of the Clio 197, but I think slightly more agile.